Using Real-Time Tools to Contract Better Sub-Metering Projects

Published July 15, 2025

Trying to oversee contractors feels notoriously like managing chaos. Multiply this feeling across several sub-metering projects and complex installs, and it starts to be more like leading a crisis.

Contracting out sub-metering services typically means dealing with poor communication, unexpected delays, unclear timelines, and constant status chasing. While outsourcing is crucial for managing project backlogs, it often comes at the expense of visibility and confidence in timely, accurate system deployment.

Live transparency tools and real-time progress tracking should not be a value-added feature. Start expecting these capabilities when considering bids so work stays accountable, documentation can be kept organized, and every stakeholder can trust what’s happening in the field.

Common Pitfalls in Sourcing Sub-Metering Projects

Sub-metering projects are prone to deploy off-target when there are gaps in oversight. The wrong contractor can not only slow down a project, but they create silos in your project portfolio and miss compliance details.

Being unequipped to identify these issues puts you at risk if they become costly complications and setups.

Lack of visibility or accountability

Without structured reporting and live tools, status updates are fragmented and can get buried in emails, passed around by word of mouth, or even worse, never happen at all. This leaves you with reactive attempts to manually chase down information.

Weak compliance practices or poor documentation

Missing as-built drawings, incomplete commissioning records, or undocumented changes can lead to regulatory problems and expensive rework if you cannot prove what was done and when, your liability increases.

Live Sub-Metering Project Tracking

Contracting out sub-metering work doesn't have to mean giving up control and visibility. Live progress tracking can transform the entire project experience and bolster internal confidence to expand operations and take on more work.

 Visibility & Confidence

• No more chasing updates across teams — Live tools eliminate the grind of emailing, calling, and messaging different trades just to figure out what’s been completed. Real-time dashboards let you see what’s happening, where it's happening, and whether it’s been verified — without waiting for someone to send a report.
   
• Organization-wide clarity — Operations, finance, engineering, and sales can all work from the same live data. This eliminates silos and keeps everyone aligned, from forecasting budgets to managing customer expectations.
   
• Better forecasting and faster closeouts — Knowing in real time which meters are installed, commissioned, and verified helps your teams better plan handoffs and closeouts. It ultimately helps ensure the time between installation and billing activation stays minimal.
   

You should be leveraging contractors who support real-time progress tracking. It is a business-critical feature that saves time, reduces miscommunication, and gives every stakeholder confidence in the work being delivered.

VIP Sub-Metering Project Management Tools 

VIP Meter Services provides clients with complete visibility into every step of a project rollout, utilizing advanced tools that offer centralized and simple visibility. 

Our OnSiteAssist application ensures every technician verifies and documents every step in the field. This tool streams data to a live Status Dashboard to support live progress updates across multiple properties. It also reports each asset to a centralized enterprise planning (ERP) system to keep every asset, document, and drawing organized and easily accessible.

OnSiteAssist: Verified, Accurate Installs From the Field Up

Every professional on the ground during a VIP sub-metering project uses the OnSiteAssist mobile app to guide and verify each step of the installation process. It eliminates paper forms and manual entry by digitally tagging meters, validating suite assignments, running functional tests, and uploading documentation in real time.

The app supports consistency across every install, whether it spans two floors or twenty. Each action updates the project’s audit trail and feeds live, accessible updates.

Key Client Benefits

• Real-time electronic syncing of suite and circuit numbers
• Cloud storage of documentation and photos
• Audit trail for every meter point
• Instant visibility for operations, QA, and compliance teams.

Status Dashboard: Visualized Project Monitoring

Stop juggling spreadsheets or waiting for field reports and give your teams a top-down, live view of every active VIP sub-metering deployment from our Status DashBoard.

Designed for project managers, finance teams, and operations leads, the dashboard consolidates field activity data into a central interface and visualization. It makes it easy to track sub-metering project progress, spot issues, and keep timelines intact.

Key Client Benefits

• Portfolio-wide project tracking
• Central hub for meter management and alert monitoring
• Visual map view of all active properties and assets
• User-friendly design for even non-technical stakeholders

ERP System: Organized & Accessible

Sub-metering projects create large volumes of technical documentation and data. 

Handling drawing, certificates, and project files with manual or inconsistent operating procedures leaves these critical assets insecure and vulnerable to loss.

Meter systems also require diligent record-keeping to maintain accurate records of accounts and the meters they’re connected to.

VIP’s centralized ERP system keeps every organized from kickoff to closeout. Every technician, verifier, and project manager works from the same structured platform, meaning properties stay ready for billing and always audit-ready.

Key Client Benefits

• Centralized, secured storage of project files, certificates, and drawings
• Automated documentation workflows to reduce manual errors
• System mapping for future billing or maintenance
• Platform access for auditors, clients, and service teams

VIP Does Sub-Metering Projects Right

Contracting sub-metering projects shouldn’t be stressful or uncertain. With VIP, you get a licensed contractor who handles the technical work, the compliance requirements, and the documentation with precision.

VIP’s live progress tracking keeps your projects clean, accountable, and moving forward so you can focus on growth, not fire drills.

Connect with one of our project consultants today to begin customizing your sub-metering project.